December 5, 2010 - The TPC Stadium Course at PGA West, La Quinta, California

Well before the sun came up, our alarm rang, jolting us out of a deep sleep.  Into warm clothes and the car, we made our way to Starbucks where we each got a muffin and a latte.  The baristas were very perky and too wide awake for this early in the morning, but we got a kick out of them and the coffee was good.


Walking out of the clubhouse and through Ernie's restaurant, I saw a beautiful sunrise climbing over the Santa Rosa mountains and the Stadium course.  TPC Stadium Course at PGA West  The clubhouse has their fire pits lit which warms the cool air and accents a beautiful picture of what lies ahead.  

Sunrise over the  Stadium Course.

The Stadium course has been rated one of the Top 100 Courses in the World by Golf Magazine and the 4th toughest course in America in Golf Digest's "Top 50 Toughest Courses in America."  We had played this course in October as well, but had played best ball with Susan and Jerry; new friends we met on the vacation and who, it turns out, have a weekend home just down the street from us.  Playing best ball relieves you of any pressure to perform and you don't keep score, so it would be a totally different experience this time around.

Our golf clubs had been stored overnight, and were ready to be placed on our cart when we arrived.  Stan and I chipped, putted and drove a bit, waiting for Joe, who arrived a little bleary-eyed and munching on a breakfast burrito.  He and Kristi had gone to Morgan's at La Quinta, which is a fantastic restaurant.  Morgan's in the Desert  Susan, Jerry, Stan and I went there the last time we were here and had a very memorable meal.

There are similarities between the Nicklaus course and the Stadium course.  There is a lot of dormant grass surrounding tee boxes, fairways and greens, with oversized bunkers and a lot of water (aka blue grass).  The fairways seem to be the size of postage stamps on this course, however, and it is a real challenge to land on the fairway.  

We were not allowed to take our golf carts on the grass at all today.  We were concerned about how that would impact us physically; there would be a lot of running back and forth, but the rules are the rules.  So Joe suggested we play Cart Path Golf, which means that you do your best to hit your ball near the cart path so you won't have to run across the fairway so many times.  He can do it.  Stan and I struggle with just hitting the ball straight, let alone making it go exactly where we want it.  Anyway, we would give it the old college try with some success, but not much.  And we also learned about Army Golf today.  You start on one side, hit to the other side, then hit to the other side.  Right, left, right, left . . . Army Golf.  

There are huge elevation changes, so course management is very important here, especially for a player of my level.  However, players at our level just can't manage the ball very well, so therein lies the problem.  

I did learn that your practice swing is critical.  I always thought so, but Joe stressed this, especially with my chip shots.  There are a lot of hills here (which my ball was extremely attracted to), and, like yesterday, I was digging out of a lot of hillsides with a lot of tall, dead grass.  Taking several practice swings, whether with a long iron or a short club, allowed me to see just where the ball would go based on the trajectory of my club swing, marked by the grass.  It was easier to see in the dead grass than on the fairway, but I was trying to get the hang of it no matter where I was and keep my body low, head steady and feet and shoulders pointed in the right direction.  Joe noticed that my shoulders were pointed in a different direction than my feet, so he had me do a shoulder shimmy before each shot to straighten out my upper body.  It worked fairly well and will be something I'll have to practice over and over and over again.


On one hole (can't remember which one), I used my 5 iron to get to the green.  Lo and behold, I actually did it and the ball landed a couple of inches from the pin.  A pretty proud moment, I have to say, especially because it happened right in front of my golf instructor!!!

Stan wasn't driving very well again today.  He just couldn't find the fairways, and he was getting a little tired.  It's one thing to play two or three times a week on the neighborhood courses with friends, but playing courses of this caliber, and one day after another, and with your golf pro, is another thing entirely.  About mid-way through the game, Stan stopped taking his practice swing, and it showed in his performance, but he never seemed discouraged.  He was just happy to be playing golf, and playing golf at this magnificent course.  After eating a sandwich (even though it was only 9:30 in the morning), he got some of his energy back and started playing with more gusto. 

I learned another little golf saying today.  (Joe is a wealth of information!)   It's called "Whipped Cream on Dog S**t."  Let's say that it takes you 5 or 6 shots to get to the green on a par 4, and then you one putt.  That, my friends, is whipped cream on dog s**t.  Stan had two of those; on the 9th and the 10th.  Hilarious!


This course has mega-bunkers.  Stan and I got in a bunker that was probably 10 feet deep.  

The 16th hole has a bunker that is between 20 and 25 feet deep.  We all managed to stay out of that one, but Joe dropped a ball in there on purpose just to see if he could get out . . .

The 17th hole is called Alcatraz.  It's a little island green sitting in the water.  The last time we played, not one of us made it out there.  This time, things were 2/3 different.  Stan and Joe made it onto the green, Joe sitting up on a ridge that didn't even have a tee box, but I didn't, even after three tries.  Next time. 

  

I shot 67 on the front nine and 65 on the back for a total of 132 (ugh!), with 8 out of 14 tee shots making the fairway (even here!), and 42 putts.  Stan shot 63 on both the front and back nine for a total of 126, hitting 4 out of 14 fairways and shooting 41 putts.

The end of our second GolfTec/LaQuinta golf vacation has come to an end.  Boy it was fun.  We learned so much, and we hope to be able to put at least some of it into practice.  And that is the operative word here . . . practice.  We have to do so much more of it.  The driving range has to become our new best friend.  We said goodbye to Joe (who shot a 75 off the championship tees and made our vacation so much more fun and very memorable) - we'll see him on December 14th for a lesson -  and sped off to the hotel.

After packing and a quick shower, we went to Twenty6, a casual restaurant on the La Quinta property.  Twenty6  The last time we were here, I had a great Mandarin Cashew Chicken Salad with pea tendrils and sweet sesame soy dressing, and I ordered it again ($16).  It did not disappoint.  I'll eat almost anything with cashews (or goat cheese) in it.  Stan got the Prime Rib French Dip with horseradish cream, au-jus ($16).  It comes with provolone cheese, but he ordered it without.  Stan didn't think there was enough meat on the sandwich and said it was just OK, but it came with coleslaw and house made pickles, which he liked.  

My hands are sore, my body is tired, but I'm energized and ready to play again.